Iraq / Middle East & North Africa

The Iraqi city of Mosul is once again one of the world’s deadliest places for journalists. In the past two months, the capital of Nineveh province has witnessed a series of targeted assassinations that, according to local press freedom groups, have led to an exodus of journalists from the city fearing for their safety.

Two murdered journalists for the Africa service of Radio France Internationale, Ghislaine Dupont, 51, and Claude Verlon, 58, might have had a chance. They were abducted on November 2 in Kidal in northern Mali, but the vehicle their captors were driving suddenly broke down, according to news reports.

New York, October 25, 2013–Iraqi authorities must immediately identify the motive behind the killing of another journalist in the northern city of Mosul and ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. At least two other Iraqi journalists have been killed in Mosul this month.

New York, October 7, 2013–Two Iraqi journalists were shot dead by unidentified assailants in the city of Mosul on Saturday, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the killing and calls on the Iraqi government to ensure the perpetrators are held to account.

Mhamed Krichen/CPJ Board memberThere seems to be no end to American surprises when it comes to Al-Jazeera. The latest was revealed by Der Spiegel, the German weekly news magazine, which reported the U.S. National Security Agency hacked into our internal communications system, according to documents provided by Edward Snowden, the former NSA security analyst.

Three Iraqi journalists were released on bail June 20, 2013, after being held for two weeks by the Ministry of Defense for purportedly stealing an official’s notebook.

As growing sectarian violence across Iraq renews fears of civil war, journalists gathered in New York this week to talk about their experiences reporting in the country over the past decade.

New York, May 23, 2013–A prominent Iraqi sheikh told CPJ Wednesday he has had nothing to do with threats against a journalist or the recent abduction of the reporter’s brother.

New York, May 21, 2013–Iraqi authorities must launch an investigation into a May 14 episode in which a group of armed men raided the home of a journalist and briefly abducted his brother. The journalist, Azhar Shallal, had recently written about alleged corruption.